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Soon to be a major motion picture called "The Right Kind of Wrong," starring Ryan Kwanten from True Blood!"Kelly Palamino's engagingly idiosyncratic voice falls somewhere between On the Road and Bright Lights, Big City. He's the Lone Ranger in love, riding out the rough patches on a Thorazine habit." -PeopleAt twenty-nine, Kelly Palamino's a little off-kilter but settled into his career of professional dishwasher. His big, blond, ex-hippie wife has left him for good.So it's with no particular purpose that Kelly positions himself on his porch across the street from an Episcopal church in Jackson, Wyoming, to witness a singular sight: a dark-haired bride in full regalia punting a football over the rectory before turning resolutely to walk down the aisle.It's love at first sight for Kelly, and he'll do absolutely anything and everything to get his girl..."Kelly is full-tilt Gonzo crazy. But crazy people can make good protagonists, particularly when they narrate in their own uniquely whacked-out voice." -Atlanta Journal-Constitution"Tim Sandlin's first novel is impressive...[He] may be compared to Tom Robbins...but Sandlin appears to be more subtle...a fun read." -San Diego Union-Tribune"An anarchic novel that is by turns wryly observant and outrageously slapstick...a novel that shows wit and strength and a sweet sensibility toward the loser in everyone." -Kansas City Star"A potent cocktail mixture of Jack Kerouac, Tom Robbins, and David Lynch topped off with a western twist." -Denver Post
After witnessing a bride punt a football over a church rectory, a dishwasher named Kelly Palamino becomes obsessed with winning her heart, setting off a chain of chaotic and ill-advised romantic pursuits. Kelly, a man navigating life with a distinct lack of direction and a penchant for self-medication, finds his mundane existence in Jackson, Wyoming, upended by this singular, bizarre encounter. He must contend with his own erratic impulses, the social constraints of a small town, and the reality that the object of his affection is already spoken for. The narrative unfolds through Kelly's idiosyncratic, first-person perspective, capturing his descent into a singular, obsessive goal that defies conventional logic.
Critics have frequently noted the novel's anarchic energy and its stylistic debt to authors like Tom Robbins and Jack Kerouac. The reception highlights the protagonist's unique, albeit unstable, voice as the primary engine driving the narrative's appeal. Reviewers often point to the balance between the story's slapstick humor and its underlying, more subtle observations about human nature. The consensus suggests that the book succeeds as a character-driven piece that finds charm in the unconventional and the slightly broken. Readers generally appreciate the wit and the specific, western-infused sensibility that defines the author's debut work.
Page Count:
240
Publication Date:
1988-01-01
Publisher:
Flamingo
ISBN-10:
0006542433
ISBN-13:
9780006542438
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